12 best homesteading guides

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Your Hands-On, Step-by-Step Guide to Sustainable Living

Create a more sustainable life for yourself and your family with 40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead! Learn how to make the most out of the space you have and become more self-sufficient, even if your yard is small.

The projects in this book are designed with simplicity in mind—because your time is valuable!

Garden Structures

The heart of any backyard homestead is its garden. Not only will it provide you with a bounty of fresh vegetables, it will also save you money!

In this book, you'll find projects that fit your space, whether large or small, country or urban. Learn how to build an inclined planter, make a bottom-watered container garden, make soil blocks, and much more!

Fences and Pens

Your backyard homestead will surely benefit from a good fence and sturdy pens—especially if you intend to keep animals!

Learn how to install a picket fence or solar-powered electric fence, add a gate, make a PVC hen pen, and more. Your neighbors and livestock will thank you for your efforts!

Plumbing and Wiring

As your backyard homestead grows, you're going to want to upgrade your outdoor plumbing and electricity. Learn the essentials for getting water and power where you want it!

You'll find safe, permanent projects like installing an anti-freeze spigot or a GFCI receptacle, running outdoor conduit and cable, and adding supplemental light for your chickens.

Step-by-Step Directions

Inside this book, you'll find every project broken down into step-by-step directions with sequenced photographs for easy reference. Each project has a handy list of tools and materials at the beginning, as well as an overview of the design you're about to build.

Get the confidence you need to tackle your sustainable living dream!

Diagrams, Illustrations, & Exploded Views

The projects inside this book feature handy diagrams, illustrations, and exploded views that provide easy reference to specific measurements and the anatomy of structures and devices.

You'll find a goat shed plan, perspective views, hen pen measurements, and everything else you need to ensure your project comes out right!

Building Sheds and Beehives

All animals need shelter from the wind and rain to keep them safe, warm, and happy.

Whether you need to build a goat shed, chicken run, or a beehive (Langstroth, Warre, or Top-Bar), you'll find the right project for you and your livestock's needs inside this book.

Solar Power, Wind Power, Aquaponics, and Hydroponics

When you're ready to take your backyard homestead further, you'll learn how to produce green energy by installing a pump or aeration windmill and solar power.

Introduction chapters to aquaponics and hydroponics will help you get acquainted with each method to determine if one might be right for your needs.

Projects for Your Innovative, Functional Homestead

40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead was written with simplicity of design in mind. Each makes the most out of basic materials to respect your budget. Attention is also paid to the human factor—that is, making each finished project convenient and simple to use on a day-to-day basis.

Your time is valuable, and this book does not expect you to be a master builder. Inside, you'll find all the projects you need to make the most of your homestead, along with concise step-by-step details that will give you the confidence to build them.

Get started on your road to sustainable living with 40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead!

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Pressure Canning

“I succeeded in learning how to use a pressure canner without blowing up my kitchen or killing my family. So can you. It takes learning the whys and hows, then deciding what is best for your family. You see that pressure canner sitting there? Smile at it, give it a hug, and get to know it. It will soon become your partner in preserving clean healthy foods that contain pronounceable ingredients. How can you deny yourself or your family this opportunity? You can’t, and you shouldn’t.”

Dehydrating

"The biggest misconception is that all foods which are dehydrated become brittle when completely dried. Most vegetables will finish with either a leathery or brittle texture. Dried fruits are generally brittle, leathery, or pliable. Herbs, when completely dried, are brittle regardless of the type of herb being dried. Fruit or vegetable peels can also be dried and will be brittle upon completion, making them easy to grind into powder.”

Fermenting

“The public understands that probiotics are necessary to maintain a healthy digestive system but tends to resort to a synthetic probiotic option readily available over the counter. This type of probiotic is easy to consume with the instruction of “just add water.” What most people don’t understand is that a synthetic probiotic should only be consumed for a course of ten days at a time, whereas natural probiotics found in foods and drinks can be consumed daily without any restrictions. If the thought of fermented tea, water, vegetables, and even condiments is not appealing to you, then how about sauerkraut? Sadly, in our culture,

consuming fermented foods is foreign to many, even to homesteaders, though throughout Asia, Europe, and Africa, these foods are consumed daily and are credited for maintaining good health. What is more beneficial than natural probiotics and healthy enzymes? I can’t

think of anything.”

Freezing

“Ultimately, my goal is to freeze foods that cannot be canned, dried, or do not freeze-dry well. In addition to this, I'd like more options to what's being placed into the freezer, like vegetables and fruit, which can later be used for cooking. Additionally, I love knowing that freezing vegetables or fruit depletes very little of their nutritional content.”

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An intro to homesteading

Learn about soil types, growing zones, and seasons, all of which affect what you can grow on your homestead.

Detailed project guides

Calculate cost estimates, explore detailed timelines, and learn best practices for specific projects like planting fruit trees and raising chickens.

Advice for beginners

Get troubleshooting tips for solving common, project-specific problems you might encounter as you build and manage your homestead.